This blog is a chronicle of my thoughts and photographs pertaining to the two TPLO surgeries that Ivy, my Labrador Retriever had performed on February 11, 2008 by Dr. Robert Pernell of Coastal Carolina Veterinary Specialists, N. Charleston, SC and on October 9, 2008 by Dr. Jeff Stallings of Tidewater Veterinary Surgery, Virginia Beach, VA. Ivy is a 7 year old, 63 pound, spayed female yellow Labrador Retriever. She is one very brave dog.

Monday, January 12, 2009

A Longer Walk Today

We tried Ivy on a longer walk today. We went again to one of her favorite places, the Dismal Swamp Canal Trail. This is an old section of Route 17 in Chesapeake, Virginia that was closed a few years ago when a new section was opened up, and runs along the historic Dismal Swamp Canal. The city is maintaining it as a multipurpose hiking, jogging, biking, and equestrian trail, that is 8.5 miles long. We walked 3/4 mile down the trail and back in about 45 minutes. Ivy did great. Joe and I were a little cold; it was about 45 degrees. We let Ivy off leash as there were not many folks out in the chilly weather and she loved that.

To E in Hickory:Dr Stallings is the guy you want. There is another specialist in Chesapeake, but my regular vet would NOT recommend him (can't recall the name, sorry). This is a very expensive surgery and there are a couple of procedures out there appropriate to Labs(TPLO and TTA). Dr Stallings does them both and he is a member of ACVS. The rehab can be challenging, as I am sure you are beginning to find out while doing your research. Dr Stallings is very strict regarding the recovery process, but my dog is just one of his success stories and I would not hesitate to use him again for any orthpedic issues.

A note about this blog

If you are reading this blog for the first time, I urge you to start at the beginning (it reads backwards and I don't know how to change it). For whatever reason, some of the earlier photos are missing, possibly due to some changes Blogger has made over the years. I am trying to recover and republish those photos.

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About Me

I'm a Certified Virginia Master Naturalist,
board member with the Virginia Beach Audubon Society, member of the
Virginia Society of Ornithology, member of the Butterfly Society of
Virginia, and a member of Back Bay Restoration Foundation.
Additionally, I volunteer for the Virginia Beach SPCA, Lynnhaven
River NOW, and the City of Virginia Beach.

I am a photography enthusiast and I am indeed fortunate that many of my photos of native birds and
wildlife have appeared in local publications. For the last several
years, my photos of local Virginia Beach Bald Eagles have appeared in
the Garden of Eagles calendar, an international publication. My husband Joe and I live on the Signature at West Neck with our two dogs,
Mocha and Frodo.